Obama arrives for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association)- President Barack Obama has described the United States as “a Pacific power” during his visit to China, saying that his country is leading to promote shared security and economic growth.

“America’s a Pacific power, and we are leading to promote shared security and shared economic growth in this century just as we did in the last,” Obama said at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Beijing on Monday.

The US president made the remarks amid recent tensions with China over the regional issues in the Asia-Pacific region.

The Obama administration has a long-term plan for the Asia-Pacific region, called “pivot” of US military towards the region.

Experts warn that President Obama’s “pivot” strategy towards Asia and the US military buildup in the Pacific could lead to a potential clash with China and Russia.

During his visit, Obama also announced an agreement with China which extend visa for the nationals of both countries. Based on the deal, student and exchange visas for Chinese nationals travelling to the United States would be extended to five years and business and tourist visas to 10 years.

“We want China to do well,” Obama said. “We compete for business, but we also seek to cooperate on a broad range of challenges and shared opportunities.”

However, there were signals of tense competition between the two countries.

The United States accuses China of manipulating the exchange rate for the national currency and violating human rights.

“We look to China to create a more level playing field on which foreign companies are treated fairly.”

Obama called on China to “move definitively toward a more market-determined exchange rate and, yes, to stand up for human rights and freedom of the press.”

Hours before Obama’s remarks, he was at the US Embassy to pursue a trade pact with 11 countries that would extend the US economic presence in Asia. China is not among the countries.